The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has endorsed Nigeria’s December 2025 inflation outcome and the revised Consumer Price Index (CPI) methodology adopted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), describing the changes as consistent with international best practices and supportive of macroeconomic stability.
Okay News reports that in a statement issued on Thursday on behalf of the IMF Resident Representative for Nigeria, Christian Ebeke, the Fund welcomed the latest CPI data showing easing inflationary pressures that could help reduce the cost of living if the trend continues.
The statement was issued by the Office Manager to the IMF Resident Representative for Nigeria, Laraba Bonet.
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate moderated sharply to 15.15 per cent in December 2025, following the NBS’s methodological review. The IMF described the outcome as a positive signal for the economy.
“We welcome the December Consumer Price Index inflation figures released by the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, which show an easing of inflation that, if sustained, will help reduce cost-of-living pressures and support macroeconomic stability,” the Fund stated.
The December reading marked a significant slowdown from earlier levels, reinforcing expectations that inflationary momentum may be gradually weakening.
The NBS recently rebased the CPI and adopted a twelve-month reference period for 2024, replacing the single-month reference approach previously used for year-on-year inflation calculations.
According to the IMF, the new approach aligns Nigeria’s inflation measurement with global standards.
“The release reflects a welcome change in methodology that aligns Nigeria’s CPI calculation with international best practices, as set out by ECOWAS and the IMF’s 2020 CPI Manual,” the statement noted.
Under the revised framework, the NBS now links the old CPI series to the rebased and reweighted index using the full year of 2024 as the reference period. The IMF described this as a critical improvement in data quality and comparability over time.
While acknowledging that the change resulted in revisions to Nigeria’s 2025 inflation figures, the IMF stressed that the broader direction of inflation still showed a gradual easing throughout the year.
“This change leads to a revision of the 2025 inflation numbers but continues to show a trend of inflation coming down throughout the year,” it added.
The IMF’s endorsement comes amid public debate over Nigeria’s inflation path following the CPI rebasing exercise, which the NBS said was necessary to avoid distortions driven by statistical base effects rather than real price pressures.
Data from the latest CPI report showed that the CPI rose to 131.2 points in December from 130.5 points in November, indicating a slower pace of increase in average prices across the economy.
On a year-on-year basis, headline inflation fell to 15.15 per cent in December 2025 from 17.33 per cent in November and was far lower than the 34.80 per cent recorded in December 2024.
This reflected a sharp deceleration in inflation over the twelve-month period.
 has endorsed Nigeria’s December 2025 inflation outcome and the revised Consumer Price Index (CPI) methodology adopted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), describing the changes as consistent with international best practices and supportive of macroeconomic stability.){kind=link}